ncemt

I started out as an NA (nursing assistant), and will be starting a DNP degree CRNA program next month. I know that doesn't exactly answer your question, but if you were wondering if you can start out a bit "lower" on the totem pole (from a degree standpoint ONLY) and still end up in CRNA school, then yes, you can :).

I'm glad there will be another Texan, too! I've heard Arlington is a pretty cool place, though I've never been there myself. There were actually a lot of Texans at Duke when I went there for undergrad, and North Carolina is such a friendly place that I felt right at home :). Florida's okay, I miss living in a town with more young people and a lot more going on...Durham was a great place to go to college! As for whoever asked about living in Chapel Hill, the cost of living is a LOT higher there and transportation would be kind of a bummer (there's a free bus called the Robertson bus that goes between UNC and Duke on the half hour, but it's not really super convenient). I can't WAIT to be back in North Carolina, I couldn't be more excited to be joining you all this Spring!!!!!!

I'm in, too!!! Yay for all of us! :) P.S. Spring 2011: Where in Texas are you from? I'm from Austin but I'm currently living in St. Pete, right near your relatives in Clearwater :)

Haha, my bad, I was thinking you started in the Spring! Three weeks works, then :). Good luck with starting classes!!! I've been thinking more about nursing jobs, too...obviously it's still a long way to go for me, but the reality is that there are definitely no guarantees after school, even with a Duke degree. I'd love to get into critical care right after graduation, but I don't know how realistic that is. Cross that bridge when I come to it, I guess!

Twois- Thanks for the advice, I've heard that too but I wasn't sure if it was just NICU-related (since NICU NP programs tend to require more experience than the rest, usually 2 years rather than one or even none). How are you liking the Duke program? What did you think of the first semester courses and do you have any suggestions for surviving them (provided we actually get in )?

Sandy- that sounds really cool! Have you looked into UNC's NP program at all? I was checking out their website the other day and it looks like they actually have a master's degree with a focus in adult oncology. http://nursing.unc.edu/degree/msn/anp.html I suppose they have a pretty great nursing school in spite of being tar heels :). My nursing interests are mainly in critical care...before I go back to school for a master's I'd love to spend some time in peds CVICU since I've shadowed down there a bit and the pace seems faster than the NICU, where I am now. The itsy bitsy ones are cute and all, but I miss working with kids that talk :). Anybody else interested in peds?

Painted: I'm thinking about CRNA, or possibly (but less likely) peds critical care NP or peds hem/onc NP...how 'bout yourself?

I was reading the thread for the last class (Fall 2010), and it sounds like they all found out together on the Monday, February 15th. Since their last interview group was scheduled for Friday, February 5th, if they do it the same way this cycle then we should find out on Monday, August 16th (i.e. the Monday after the Friday after the last interview :)). And of course, I'm still going to be driving myself crazy checking every day between now and then anyway. Sigh...this will be a LOOOOOOONG week.

Yogi Mel: I wouldn't worry too much about traffic most of the way, but I would plan on trying to get around Raleigh before rush hour really gets going...the loops around Raleigh (440 and 540) can get pretty busy in both directions in the morning and evening (even though you won't have to go far on them). If you end up running a little late don't stress too much though, because the parking garage is directly across from the School of Nursing and even though the schedule shows an 8:30am start they seem like they don't actually expect everyone to be there until nine (that's when the introduction started). Good luck to everyone interviewing tomorrow, enjoy the day!!!

PaintedSky: My thoughts exactly

Sounds like interviews went great for everybody so far, congratulations! I do think there's plenty of room for all of us, based on the threads for the last few application cycles Allnurses posters tend to have a very high rate of acceptance :). Thanks for the updated info on when we'll hear the application decision, at least now that we have a firm date I won't be wearing out my computer checking nonstop after the 6th! Scary to think this was their most competitive cycle so far, but if ~120 out of ~150 get some version of accepted then I think those are pretty good odds (I'm counting the waitlist because I've heard they usually make it through most of their waitlist and last cycle they made it through at least #12 and probably even higher up than that). One way or the other, the next few weeks are going to go by killer slow, I can already tell. Maybe if we get bored enough we can start posting random questions, like why we decided to go into nursing or what we're doing now or what we're looking forward to about living in NC (positive thinking, people! hehe). Anything to make the next 3 weeks inch by just a little faster :)

Best of luck to everybody interviewing today, you guys will do AWESOME!!!:anpom:

Thanks so much, spring2011! That's what I was leaning towards, I'd definitely rather err on the side of being overdressed rather than underdressed. Guess I'll see many of you all on Friday, can't wait to meet everybody!

This may be nitpicky, but I'm just 22 and right out of college so I'm not 100% sure what's expected in the real world...are pantyhose a must? I'm wearing a (somewhat colorful) skirt with a beige blouse and a black suit jacket on top, and beige flats for shoes. Hopefully it will be dressy enough even though it's not a suit! Any advice on the pantyhose issue would be very much appreciated :). Good luck with interviews, everybody!

I work in a NICU and I find it works best when I unwrap the infant, place the BP cuff, and then reswaddle the baby. That way they calm down quickly and you can even hold them or rock them to keep them calm while the machine is reading the pressure (it won't affect the results).

Wow, thank you so much for all of that information! I attended a couple of their info sessions a year or two ago when I was living on campus but unfortunately I don't remember too much specific information about admissions, numbers of applicants interviewed/accepted etc. (not that it would be terribly relevent now since the school didn't even have "tracks" back then, for example, and all of the numbers would be out-of-date). I definitely remember my overall impression was that it was an excellent school, and I thought the student panel was a key part of that...not too many schools are willing to give you access to current students, and I think the fact that they are happy to do so says a lot about the quality of the program. Now I want to go there even more...ah, stress...

Hey guys, I'm applying for Spring 2011 as well, I'm living in Florida right now and working as a Patient Care Assistant in the NICU but I actually went to Duke for my undergrad (finished my degree a semester early in Dec 2009). Would LOVE to be back in Durham, I have a lot of great friends and contacts there from school and I really miss the area. Still need to finish my psychology and sociology prerequisites but I'm planning on doing that this summer and fall. As for the application process, I definitely second the question about the personal statement...not too clear what they're expecting in terms of length. Also, does anyone know whether the clinical sites are mostly in the Raleigh/Durham area or if you end up at sites all over NC? Applying to UNC as a back up (as I'm sure a lot of people are), but Duke's my #1 choice. Go Devils!!!

Hey guys! I'm applying to the ABSN program for Spring 2011 and I had a quick question: is it true that recommendations are not required nor accepted by the program? That's what the old application said for your group, but I couldn't tell if it was true for just the regular BSN program or for both the BSN and ABSN programs. Thanks!

krinz86, I'm applying for the Fall 2010 cohort, too, so I can't answer your question about the alternates. However, I did attend the live information session at USF this morning and I can tell you that the guy leading the session said that in each of the last two semesters an applicant with a 3.01 was admitted to the accelerated program. He said if your GPA is on the low side the most important factors are how you did in the prerequisite science courses (A&P I&II, micro, stats, and chemistry) and whether you have healthcare experience on your resume or not. Hope this helps!

Experienced fainter here as well (11 times and counting), the only thing I can add that hasn't been mentioned yet is to purchase a box of ammonia inhalants and keep a couple on you at all times. They're small and easy to hide in a scrub pocket, and although it's embarrassing to have to pull one out and use it, it's far less embarrassing than having to be revived and possibly having your shirt and bra cut off.

Thanks so much for replying, straderj! I won't worry so much about being too late for the undergrad application, then :). Also, I just wanted anyone who had the same question about the psych course to know that I was actually able to talk to someone from the admissions office today and she said that any course with the psych (or sociology, or social psychology) designation would fulfill the requirement. Had to double check it because that was the only thing keeping me from being able to apply! Oh, and it's great that they tell you so soon after the due date, thanks for that info, too!

I know this is a little off of the wait list/alternates topic, but I'm applying for the Fall semester and I was wondering if you guys could tell me whether the program accepts an upper-level psych class for prereqs or whether it has to be general psychology. Also, do you absolutely have to apply to USF undergrad the semester before or is that just a suggestion? Thank you so much!!!

Does anyone know if there are is any sort of quota concerning the percentage of the class that is made up of Florida residents? I'm from out of state and I'm just wondering if that's not a big deal or if it's going to make it much harder for me to get in...

So several of the CRNA schools I'm looking at eventually applying to want their applicants to have completed an organic chemistry course. I took orgo at a very good school and got a C, which was not terrible considering everyone else in the class was pre-med and the average was a C+. Still, I'm wondering whether anesthesia schools will only care that I've taken the course, or if they'll actually be looking hard at the grade I received in the course to see whether I can be successful in anesthesia school. I'm thinking about retaking it and trying to raise my grade if it's an important part of the application. Any thoughts?

Thanks so much for your advice, mahatma! That was the direction I was leaning towards as well. If I can finish in nearly the same amount of time with a better GPA and a smile on my face, it's probably worth any tiny sort of edge an accelerated program would give me during the CRNA school admissions process. I've actually spent more than 50 hours shadowing CRNAs and LOVED every minute of it, but I'm definitely still keeping my options open in case I learn about something else I want to do more- and that's very good to know about the usual amount of time you're expected to stay on a unit. Thank you!